The present of invention relates to an apparatus for testing devices requiring shielding from radio frequency (RF) energy.
Testing of certain devices such as cellular telephones requires shielding of the devices from ambient RF energy. The shielding is required to both ensure that external RF energy does not interfere with the device under test, and also to ensure that the device being tested does not generate RF energy that interferes with other devices. Certain devices exist for such testing, and they include, for example, devices for automatic testing on an assembly line. These devices typically include a robotic arm that loads the device under test into a testing drawer that provides RF shielding and, upon completion of the test, automatically removes the device from the testing drawer and replaces it back onto the assembly line. These automatic testing devices, however, do not have portability and thus cannot be easily moved from one site to another for testing.
Certain portable testing devices do exist for testing of RF devices. However, these testing devices typically do not have ease of accessibility for the testing, and usually do not have options for different types of testing or for use with different types of devices under test. Therefore, these testing devices must be custom made for each device to be tested. Accordingly, a need exists for an RF isolation test device having more versatility and flexibility in the options that it provides for testing.
An RF isolation test device consistent with the present invention includes an upper outer enclosure and a lower outer enclosure mating with the upper outer enclosure. The upper and lower outer enclosures provide for RF shielding of a device under test located within the test device when they are mated together. An open-close mechanism permits the upper and lower outer enclosures to open for access within the test device and to close for testing of the device under test, and the open-close mechanism includes an assist mechanism that assists a user in opening and closing the test device.
Another RF isolation test device consistent with the present invention includes an upper outer enclosure and a lower outer enclosure mating with the upper outer enclosure. The upper and lower outer enclosures provide for RF shielding of a device under test located within the test device when they are mated together. The test device also includes a handle and a corresponding locking element, operably attached to the upper and lower outer enclosures, for use in opening the upper and lower outer enclosures and for locking them closed in order to test the device under test located within the test device.